Colville’s Tiana Berkeley stepping up game on Washington Modified Tour
Colville native Tiana Berkeley’s dirt Modified career is reaching new heights as she has joined the ranks of the Washington Modified Tour, a traveling division that races at State Fair Speedway (Yakima), Grays Harbor Raceway (Elma) and Skagit Speedway near Mt. Vernon.
The series is one of the toughest Modified tours on the West Coast as 52 drivers have earned points thus far.
Having cut her teeth in Hornets at Eagle Track Raceway and Northport International Raceway, the 2014 Colville High School graduate moved to open-wheel racing. Last season Berkeley captured a Modified championship and began to look at her options on the touring level.
Compiling strong finishes in her heat and feature races, Berkeley is making a move to get inside the WMT top-10 running order on a consistent basis. After two events, Berkeley is 13th in the season’s points chase.
“My race team and I are having a blast,” said Berkeley. “The tracks are fast. We decided to travel this season so I could gain some more experience and race with new and more drivers. The level of competition is huge and we have a lot to learn, but it will be worth it.”
Berkeley travels to Skagit Speedway next weekend. Fans can keep up with her season by following Tiana Berkeley Racing on Facebook.
Busy weekend at SCR
All three of Spokane County Raceway’s facilities will be in full gear, highlighted by local NHRA racing and the return of the Northwest Super Late Model Series. The road course will host its final test session on Sunday as it heads to the 2016 season-opener on May 21.
In the Super Pro division of the NHRA Summit Series, Dale Hornby has already built a 41-point lead on Monty Rice after the season’s first two events. Rice did earn maximum points at the track’s last race to stay within striking distance of Hornby.
Pro division racing has an 11-point gap between Brian Jennen and Robby Hornby heading into the weekend. With points awarded on finishes for advancing in the bracket, the pair are looking to keep things close. Each driver has earned maximum points in the divisions first two races.
Other divisions competing on Saturday include Jr. Dragsters, Motorcycles and the popular Powder Puff racers.
The half-mile oval hosts its first of two Northwest Super Late Model Series events of the year. In the series first two seasons Northwest late model icon Garrett Evans did not claim a main event victory but was able to put together strong enough performances to win championships. This season, the 60-year old has a win and a top-3 finish to stake a lead in points standings. East valley graduate Nicole Behar is in second.